I recently interviewed Sandy Hilton for the July issue of BossFit Magazine on the topic of sex from a Pelvic Health perspective. You can find that story here (the entire issue is devoted to sex – check it out!) Sandy shared so much good information with me, and since the magazine articles are under 500 words I had to pare it down. I wanted to share the entire interview with you here. Enjoy! Tell us about yourself: I am a Doctor of Physical Therapy and have been practicing since 1988. I am the co-owner of Entropy Physiotherapy and Wellness, serving Chicago to restore hope and movement in those dealing with persistent pain, incontinence or painful sex. I serve as the Director of Programming of the Section on Women’s Health of the American Physical Therapy Association and am a member in several international organizations dedicated to providing top-notch health care. What are some reasons that men and women might find sex to be painful? Over 1 in 7 people experience pelvic pain and roughly 90% of those will have painful sex. There are multiple causes of pelvic pain in men and women. If it hurts in your pelvis, groin, belly, genitals or the hips during or after sex, you should see a physician for a good evaluation! Find a pelvic health specialist in your area, look for Urologists, Urogynecologists or Gynecologists who are experts in pelvic pain and sexual dysfunction. Common causes that we see in the clinic are related to stiffness of the muscles of the pelvic floor (those that you tighten when you do a Kegel), sensitive nerves in the area (from injury, repetitive use like long bike rides, following an infection or even sudden onset with no tracable cause), back pain and gut problems. Diagnosis like Vulvodynia, Dyspareunia, […]

I was asked this morning to write down my top 10 tips for what to avoid when starting a cash based practice. Since I always prefer to think in terms of positive ideas, I’m answering here with my top 10 tips of what TO do! I hope that this list is helpful: 1) Get really clear on your UVP and mission. Live it, breathe it. 2) Work with an attorney to set up your articles of incorporation, LLC, and all legal documents. 3) Obtain professional liability insurance. 4) Research your location. Talk to other business owners in the area. 5) Keep overhead low. 6) Negotiate a situation where you pay only for the time you are actually using the space. 7) Build relationships with everyone in the neighborhood where your office is located. 8) Do trades with personal trainers and massage therapists so they can get a feel for what you do (and refer clients that are appropriate). 9) Start at a pace comfortable for you (keep your day job and start with one day a week, or one patient a week, or whatever is financially a good decision for you). 10) Have a website (even if it’s simple). I love to help other therapists start their journey toward being an owner. If you found these tips to be valuable, you might want to check out my Webinar, Starting a Cash Based Practice. I cover these topics and more, to help you get on the path to building your ideal practice.

You Spin Me Round (Like A Record) On a recent Saturday morning I woke up and turned over to grab my phone to see what time it was. All of a sudden WHOOMP, the whole world flipped upside down. “Uggggghhhh”, I moaned as I lay there motionless, trying to explain to my husband what I was wailing about. Vertigo. online installment loans direct lenders bad credit Unfortunately, this wasn’t my first experience with Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV). I had my first bout with BPPV over 20 years ago, under the same circumstances (went to bed fine, woke up in the morning and turned over to discover the whole world flipped upside down.) At that time I had no idea what was going on. At least this time I did. BP…What? BPPV is the most common disorder of the inner ear’s vestibular system. 2.4% of people will experience it in their lifetime. Let’s first talk about the name of the disorder. Benign indicates that it is not life threatening and generally doesn’t progress. Paroxysmal indicates sudden onset of symptoms. Positional refers to the fact that the symptoms usually occur with changes in head position. Vertigo is a spinning sensation. How does it happen? Our vestibular organs in our inner ear consist of the utricle, saccule and 3 semicircular canals. The semicircular canals detect rotational movement of the head. When the head rotates the fluid exerts pressure against the cupula, the sensory receptor at the base of the canal. The receptor then sends impulses to the brain about the head’s movement. BPPV occurs when the otoconia (tiny crystals of calcium carbonate that are a normal part of the inner ear’s anatomy) detach from the otolithic membrane in the utricle and collect in one of the semicircular canals. When the head is […]

Over the past few years I’ve received countless emails, Tweets and phone calls from therapists with questions about starting and running a cash based practice. I’ve had the privilege to work one on one with some excellent therapists who are now venturing out on their own with this practice model; but, I can only help so many people at a time that way. I’m excited to launch my first Webinar designed to help you create the practice of your dreams. Thinking Outside the Box: Creating Your Cash Based Practice was designed to answer your questions. Whether you’re starting a new 100% cash based practice, transitioning from an insurance based to cash based practice, or looking to add cash based services to your existing practice, you’ll find what you need here. To your success! Ann

Interview with Pedro Borrego Last week on Twitter a conversation started about Walk In or Urgent Care Centers for physical therapy, and quickly progressed to this question: Christopher Bise ‏@ptbise @PranaPT @PTBAlliance @Adam_P_Carson @Jerry_DurhamPT What if the model flipped? Why cant surgeons work for PT owned surgery center? #SolvePT 11:49 AM – 3 Mar 2014 Ann Wendel ‏@PranaPT Mar 3 @ptbise @PTBAlliance @Adam_P_Carson @Jerry_DurhamPT Talk to @pedro_borrego about that – he’s doing it in Spain. We had a great conversation of over 195 comments, which led me to believe it would be well worth interviewing Pedro to find out more about what he is doing. In 1993, Pedro started the first physical therapy clinic in his town in Spain, and has grown it into a business which serves as a revolutionary clinic model for those of us in the US. I have known Pedro through social media and email for about 2 years now, and I am blown away by what he has done. I hope you enjoy the interview! Q: First, Pedro, tell us about the education process in Spain to become a physical therapist. A: Spain has become one of those countries in which physiotherapy education has improved since I went to University: I got my degree in 1992, a three years education in a recently established program in University of Salamanca. At that time the University didn’t offer a Master or Doctorate, so I got a foreign upgrade in General San Martin University (Argentina) and finished my first Masters degree in Healthcare Management. Nowadays this permits to me to teach as professor in the main private Distance University (UDIMA). In 2006 I reached my doctorate degree and I am preparing today a new doctoral thesis to fix the degree about physiotherapy in […]